[JURIST] US Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx [official profile] on Friday announced [press release] that the government has opened an investigation into five airlines that allegedly raised fares in Northeastern markets after the Amtrak accident [BBC report] in May. The US Department of Transportation [official website] sent letters to Delta, United, American, Southwest and JetBlue requesting information on their fare prices before and after the accident. The government is looking into routes to such airports as Reagan International, LaGuardia, John F. Kennedy, Philadelphia International and Bradley International. The investigation is attempting to determine whether any price increases violated federal regulations prohibiting airlines from engaging in unfair and deceptive business practices. The investigation was partially prompted by a letter from Senator Christopher Murphy [official website] to the Obama administration complaining about price increases after the accident, with some fares had reached as high as $2,300. However, many airlines fixed these prices shortly after Senator Murphy began to take notice.

Eight people were killed in the May 2015 derailment of an Amtrak train that was en route from Philadelphia to New York. It was reported that at the time of the accident the train was traveling over 100mph around a sharply curved section of track, twice the speed limit at that section. Federal authorities from the National Transportation Safety Board [official website] stated that the derailment was most likely accidental, although it may have been hit by a projectile just before the crash. An investigation into the cause, and into train engineer Brandon Bostian, commenced, but a definite cause could not be found, as well as no charges pressed against Bostian. In June investigators reported [WSJ report] that they were unable to determine whether Bostian had been on his cellphone just before the crash. Bostian’s lawyer said that his phone was stowed away at the time of the accident.